Deer Tick

From listening to their records, it’s hard to determine whether Rhode Island’s Deer Tick is a rock, indie folk, alternative country, or blues band, and seeing them live at The Horseshoe Tavern Tuesday night didn’t help clear that up. In fact, it added 1950s rock n’ roll cover band to the list. But honestly, no one’s really complaining.

Frontman John McCauley’s voice of sandpaper and whiskey can apparently carry out songs drawn from any genre of music – or at least everything from the sedated melody of “Dirty Dishes” to the hard and authoritative “Easy” and eventually a cover of Ritchie Valens “La Bamba.” McCauley and his blues-influenced guitar-playing and distinct rasp embody the word “grit,” and if you don’t believe me, ask his silver-plated tooth.

The band performed tracks from their entire body of work (three studio albums to date), including “When She Comes Home,” a classic blues-rock song from their latest LP The Black Dirt Sessions, fully equipped with backing harmonies and a spontaneous jam-session that would make The Band proud. On a completely different note, McCauley’s solo performance of the unreleased “Daydreaming” was vulnerable to the point of painfulness and resulted in a hush over the otherwise giddy crowd.

It’s generally safe to say that half of the notes McCauley sings sound strained, out-of-tune, or imperfect in some way, but it’s because of this that Deer Tick’s show was raw and authentic. Every word McCauley produced (or the audible ones anyway) were latched onto by the crowd, as buried in the grit and rubble of the band’s songs are lines like “I’ve got nothing to look forward to, Cause I killed all the flowers,” and other things that’ll similarly crush your spirits…in a good thought-provoking way.

Deer Tick was consistent throughout the majority of the night, evenly spacing out their major and minor chords by creating a set list that would give the audience one bluesy and boisterous track like “Straight Into A Storm” here, and one darker song like “These Old Shoes” there, ultimately keeping the emotional rollercoaster going all night. Deer Tick is without a doubt a genuine live act reminiscent of legitimate bands from the heyday of rock n’ roll (insert decade here), and are now one of those bands you wish you didn’t just miss.

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MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/deertick